There are remote areas of the world which, however remote they may be, support many small communities. These are typically widely distributed over a large area and are not interconnected by a system of paved highways or a distribution system for utilities such as water and power. In such a small community, utilities must be self provided by residents or businesses or may be derived from a small centralized utility system located in or close to the community. Electricity generators in such a community may be of several different types including water, wind and diesel-engine driven generators.
Diesel-engine driven generators are most common, yet such generators often present a most difficult maintenance problem, requiring intricate adjustments to maintain them at a reasonable operating efficiency or running reliably. Further, an electrical generation station generally relies on two or more generators. These generators may be of different capacity to deal with differing load requirements, which may vary hourly, daily, or seasonally. Typically, at least one back-up generator is required to maintain power in the event that a primary generator is stopped, for example, through failure, or in order to perform maintenance on the generator.
One significant problem is predicting fuel requirements and maintaining a fuel supply sufficient that power supply continues without interruption. This may result in excessive amounts of fuel being stored. Storing large amounts of fuel requires correspondingly large, long-term commitment of funds, with attendant interest costs. Storing and transporting large amounts of fuel may also be environmentally hazardous, particularly in remote regions which experience extreme weather conditions, for example, Alaska. Storing large amounts of fuel may mean that a community is not able to take advantage of any advantageous fuel price fluctuations.
Another significant problem is maintaining a sufficient quality, consistency, and continuity of power. As many of the above discussed small communities now rely on electronic computers, computer-controlled devices, and digital communications, it is important that a power source be available which provides a consistent narrow range of voltage and frequency, as such electronic devices may be sensitive to even relatively small power fluctuations.
In most circumstances, a small remote community will not have rapid access to skilled technical help which may be required to properly maintain one generator, let alone a system of electrical generators. Transporting such help to a remote location significantly adds to the cost of the help. Maintaining resident skilled personnel in a community is also expensive, particularly if maintenance is only required intermittently.
Microcomputer controlled devices have been devised, which are capable of automatically providing basic generator controls such as voltage and speed (frequency) control. Devices have also been devised which can provide automatic switching to a stand-by generator in the event of sudden impending failure of a primary generator, or switching of a load from one generator to another in the event of a load fluctuation. As the power requirements of small remote communities increase there is an increasing need for means to provide power to such communities via local generating stations which are capable of a high level of autonomous control and self-maintenance, but which may be monitored and controlled, alone or as part of a group, from a remote location.